University of Virginia Library

III.
HOW S— OVERHEARD HIS DEATH-WARRANT.

1. I.

In “Hunted Down,” I have attempted to give some idea of
scout life on the Rappahannock during the late war. Another
narative of the same description may interest those readers who
relish wild adventure; and the present incident will be found
more curious than the former. It befell the same personage,
S—, one of General Stuart's scouts, and I again beg to warn
the worthy reader against regarding these relations as fanciful.
Imagination has nothing to do with this one; if it possesses
no other merit, I am sure it does possess that of truth. It was
told me by the brave man whom it concerns, and I never knew
him to boast or exaggerate.

The incident took place during the summer of 1863, in the
country beyond the Rappahannock, not far from the foot of
the Blue Ridge. This region—the county of Fauquier—was the
true Paradise of the scout. On its winding and unfrequented
roads, and amid its rolling hills and mountain spurs, the scout
and ranger wandered at will, bidding defiance to all comers.
The thick woods enabled him to approach unseen until almost
in contact with the Federal parties or their encampments; and
if pursued, he had only to leap the nearest stone wall, rush
under a crest of a hill, and disappear like a shadow, or one of
those phantoms of diablerie which vanish in the recesses of
the earth. For secret operations of every description, no country

in the world is more favourable; and the present writer has
journeyed by roads and across fords in the immediate vicinity
of hostile forces, by which a column of ten thousand men
might have moved with no more difficulty than a solitary horseman.
No prying eyes followed the scout upon his way; the
extensive uplands were pasture ground for grazing great herds of
cattle. The traveller went on, mile after mile, unespied by any
one, and in presence only of tall forests and azure mountains.

In Fauquier, S— had many friends whom he was fond of
visiting on his adventurous excursions; but unfortunately he
had also a number of enemies in the persons of Federal soldiers.
Detached bodies of the enemy had pitched their tents
in the region, and the Federal cavalry scouted the main roads,
greatly harassing the inhabitants. To harass their parties in
return was the work of the ranger; and scarce a day passed
without some collision in the extensive fields or the forest glades,
in which, on one side or both, blood would flow.

Among the Federal forces, S— had achieved a high reputation
as a scout and a partisan; and had also aroused in his
enemies a profound hatred. His daring reconnoissances, secret
scouts, and audacious attacks on foraging parties, had made
them pass a lively time—and great was the joy of a Federal
Colonel commanding pickets on the upper Rappahannock
when he received intelligence one day in this summer of 1863
that the well known S— was alone at a house not far from
camp, where his capture would be easy.

S— was, in fact, at the house indicated, without the least suspicion
that his presence had been discovered. He had been sent
upon a scout in that region, and finding himself in the neighbourhood
of the family with whom he had long been on terms
of intimacy, embraced the occasion to visit them and rest for a
few hours before proceeding upon his way. On the evening
when the events about to be related occurred, he was seated in
the parlour, conversing with one of the young ladies of the
family, and perfectly at his ease both in body and mind. His
horse—an excellent one, captured a few days before from the
enemy—was in the stable, enjoying a plentiful supply of corn;

he had himself just partaken of a most inviting supper, to
which bright eyes and smiles had communicated an additional
attraction; and he was now sitting on the sofa, engaged in
conversation, not dreaming of the existence of an enemy within
a thousand miles. Let it not be supposed, however, that S—
was disarmed either of his caution or his weapons. His eye
wandered unconsciously, from pure habit, every few moments
toward the door, and around his waist was still buckled the
well-worn belt containing his pistols. These never left his person
day or night as long as he was in the vicinity of his enemies.

Such was the comfortable and peaceful “interiour” which
the mansion presented when the incident I purpose to relate
took place. S— was tranquilly enjoying himself in the society
of his kind hostess, and laughing with the light-hearted
carelessness of a boy who finds a “spirit of mirth” in everything,
when suddenly his quick ear caught the clatter of hoofs
upon the road without, and rising, he went to the window to
reconnoitre. A glance told him that the new-comers were the
enemy; and the crack through which he looked was sufficiently
large to enable him to see that they consisted of a detachment
of Federal cavalry, who now rapidly approached the house.
With such rapidity did they advance, that before S— could
move they had reached the very door; and no sooner had they
done so, than at a brief order from the officer commanding,
several men detached themselves from the troop, hurried to the
rear of the house, and in an instant every avenue of escape
was effectually cut off.

S— was now fairly entrapped. It was obvious that in
some manner the enemy had gained intelligence of his presence
at the house, and sent out a detachment for his capture or
destruction. The scout required no better proof of this than
the systematic manner in which they went to work to surround
the house, as though perfectly sure of their game, and the
business-like method of proceeding generally on the part of
the men and officers. To meet this sudden and dangerous
advance of his foes, S— saw that he must act with rapidity.
Skill and decision would alone save him, if anything could;

and in a few rapid words he explained the state of affairs. He
informed his entertainers that he was the game for whom they
were hunting; he had heard that a price was set upon his
head; if there was no means of leaving the house or concealing
himself, he did not mean to surrender; he would not be
taken alive, but would fight his way through the whole party
and make his escape, or die defending himself.

Such was the tenor of the brief address made by S—
to his fair entertainers; but they informed him in quick words
that he need not despair, they would conceal him; and then
the brave hearts set to work. One ran to the window and
demanded who was without; another closed the door in rear,
the front door being already shut; and while these movements
were in progress S— was hurried up the staircase by one
of the young ladies, who was to show him his hiding-place.
Before he had reached the head of the staircase a novel proof
was given by the Federal cavalry of the terror which they
attached to his name. A sudden explosion from without shook
the windows; six or eight carbine-balls pierced the front door,
passed through and whistled around the ladies; and a loud
shout was heard, followed by heavy shoulders thrust against
the door. It was afterwards discovered that the rattle of the
door-latch in the wind had occasioned the volley; the noise
was supposed to be that made by S— as he was about to
rush out upon them!

The scout had, meanwhile, been conducted by his fair guide
to his hiding-place, which was in a garret entirely destitute of
furniture, with bare walls, and apparently without any imaginable
facility for enabling a man to escape the prying eyes of
the “party of observation.” Here, nevertheless, S— was
concealed; and his hiding-place was excellent, from its very
simplicity. The garret had no ceiling, and the joists were
even unboarded; but upon them were stretched two or three
loose planks. The young lady hurriedly pointed to these.
S— understood in an instant; and, swinging himself up,
he reached the joist, lay down at full length upon one of the
planks next to the eaves, and found himself completely protected

from observation, unless the search for him was so
minute as to leave no corner unexplored.

Having assisted the scout to ensconce himself in his hiding-place,
the young lady hastened down from the garret, and
descended the main staircase, just as the Federal soldiers burst
open the front door and swarmed into the passage. From the
plank beneath the eaves, as the door of the garret had been
left open, S— informed me he heard every word of the following
colloquy:

“Where is the guerilla we are after?” exclaimed the officer
in command, sternly addressing the lady of the house.

“What guerilla?” she asked.

“S—.”

“He was here, but is gone.”

“That is untrue, and I am not to be trifled with!” was the
irate reply. “I shall search this house—but first read the
orders to the men!” he added, addressing a non-commissioned
officer of the troop.

This command was obeyed by a sergeant, holding an official
paper in his hand; and S— had the satisfaction of hearing
read aloud a paper which recited his various exploits, commented
upon his character in terms far from flattering, declared
him a bush whacker and guerilla, and ordered him to be put to
death wherever he was found—the men being expressly forbidden
to take him prisoner. This order was from Colonel
—, commanding the neighbouring force, and S—heard
every word of it. He was to be pistoled or sabred. No hope
of mercy—no surrender taken. Death to him!

Peril unnerves the coward, but arouses a fierce pride and
courage in the breast of the brave, to dare all, and fight to the
death. S—was made of the stuff which does not cower before
danger, but enables a man to look the King of Terrours in
the face without the shudder of a nerve. He was armed as
usual with two pistols carefully loaded and capped—for he
never neglected his arms—and before he was taken, or rather
killed, he hoped to lay low more than one of his assailants.
This was his calculation; but the scout was still a long way

from regarding his fate as sealed, his death as certain. He had
an obstinate faculty of hoping, and took the brightest view of
his critical situation. He might not be discovered; or if discovered,
he was in a position to fight to an advantage which
would make the issue of the struggle exceedingly doubtful.
He intended to spring to the floor, shoot the one or two men
who would probably penetrate to the garret, and hurl them
down the staircase—and then placing himself at the head of the
stairs, sheltered from bullets by a projection of the wood-work,
defy them to ascend. “They never could have got me out of
there,” said S—with a laugh, “unless they had burned the
house, or brought a piece of artillery to shell me out. I had
two pistols, and could have held my ground against the whole
of them all day.”

But not to digress from the actual res gestœ of the occasion,
the search for S—speedily commenced. First the parlour
and dining-room were subjected to a rigid examination, and
finding there no traces of the scout, the men scattered themselves
over the house, ransacking every apartment, and compelling
the young ladies to throw open the most private recesses
of their chambers. They looked under beds, into closets, and
behind dresses hanging up in the wardrobes, in vain search for
the game. Sabres were thrust into beds, to pierce and immolate
the dangerous wild animal if he were lying perdu between
the mattresses; and the points of the weapons did not spare the
female clothing depending from pegs in the closets. The scout
might be straightened up against the wall, behind those white
garments in closet or wardrobe; but an assiduous search failed
to discover him, and soon no portion of the whole establishment
remained unexplored but the garret. To this the party now
directed their attention.

“What room is that up there?” was the curt question of one
of the men to the young lady who stood near him.

“A garret,” was the reply.

“He may be up there—show me the way!”

“You see the way—I do not wish to go up there; the dust
will soil my dress.”

A growl greeted these quiet words, and the trooper turned
to a black servant-girl who had been made to go around with
the party in their search, holding a lighted candle.

“You go before, and show us the way,” said the trooper.
The girl laughed, declared that nobody was up there; but on
hearing the order repeated, ascended the stairs, followed by the
man.

S—had listened attentively and lost nothing; the architecture
of the house enabling him to catch the least sound without
difficulty. After the protracted search in the rooms beneath,
during which his hiding-place had not been approached,
he began to hope that the danger was over. This hope, however,
was found to be illusory, and he prepared for the crisis.

The steps of the servant-girl were heard ascending, followed
by the tramp of the trooper, whose heavy sabre rattled against
the stairs as he moved. Then a long streak of light ran over
the garret floor; and cautiously thrusting out his head from his
hiding-place, S—saw the head of the girl and her companion,
as step by step they mounted to the apartment. The
girl held up her dress with affected horror of the dust; and when
she had reached a position from which a full stream of light
could be directed into the room, she paused, and with a low
laugh called her companion's attention to the fact that there
was nothing whatever in the garret.

This, however, did not satisfy him, and he insisted upon making
a thorough search. The girl was obliged to obey his order,
and in a moment they were both standing in the room.

2. II.

S—measured the man before, or rather beneath him,
through a crevice in the plank, and calculated where he could
shoot him to the best advantage. This resource seemed all that
was left. Discovery appeared inevitable. The scout was lying
upon a single plank, directly over the head of his enemy, and
it was only necessary, apparently, for the latter to possess

ordinary eyesight to discover him. This was the scout's conviction,
as he now cautiously moved his finger to the trigger of
the pistol, which he had drawn and cocked, in expectation of
the coming struggle. He would certainly be discovered in ten
seconds, and then for an exhibition of his prowess as a Confederate
soldier and scout, which should either extricate him from
his peril, or force his very enemies to respect the courage of
the man they overwhelmed and put to death! His plan, as I
have said, was simple. He would throw himself upon this man,
shoot him through the heart, hurl the body upon the heads of
those below, and then hold his position against the whole party
at the pistol's muzzle. It was improbable that the Federal
troopers could be induced to mount the narrow stairway, at the
head of which stood at bay a desperate and determined man,
armed with a revolver in each hand. It would be certain death
to them; he must either be burned out or shelled out with
artillery! That either of these courses, however, would be
resorted to, appeared improbable; they would place a guard
around the house, and either starve or attempt to dislodge him
in some other manner. But then he would gain time; now if
time were only gained, the scout had so much confidence in his
own resources that he believed himself safe.

To return to the scene actually occurring: the Federal
trooper gazed around the garret for some hidden nook or
cranny wherein a rebel could be stowed away. Some empty
boxes attracted his attention, but an examination of them
resulted in nothing. Then, all at once, the eyes of the man
were directed toward the spot where the scout was concealed.

S—gave himself up for lost; his finger was on the
trigger, and he was about to forestall his enemy by sending a
ball through his brain, when suddenly he drew a long breath,
removed his finger from the trigger, and flattened himself
almost to nonentity on his plank. The girl had adopted an
excellent ruse, and as simple as it was excellent. Whilst conversing
carelessly with the man, she had moved directly
beneath S—, in consequence of which movement the candle
threw the shadow of the plank on which he lay directly upward.

Thus the person of the scout, prone on the plank, was wholly
hidden from view. In vain did the man move from side to
side, evidently suspecting something, and order the girl to hold
the light in such a manner as to illuminate the dusky recess
beneath the rafters. She readily did so, but so adroitly that at
every movement the shadow was made still to conceal the
scout; and ere long this comedy, in the issue of which the
life of a man was involved, came to an end. Satisfied that the
garret contained no one, the man retired, and the clank of his
sabre on the staircase as he descended gradually receded from
the hearing of S—. He was saved.

The Federal troopers remained at the house some time longer,
their officer exhibiting the utmost anger and disappointment at
the result of the expedition; but they finally departed, warning
the lady of the mansion that if she harboured “guerillas”
thereafter, her house would be burned. Leaving videttes
behind, the officer then departed with his detachment.

This was the signal for S—to descend, which he did at
once. A brief reconnoissance through the window revealed
the dark figures posted at stated intervals around the house—
but these only made him laugh. He did not fear them, and
had only one regret—the impossibility of getting his horse off.
The attempt would reveal his presence, involve the family in
danger, and might fail. He accordingly resolved to retire on
foot. This was at once and successfully accomplished. S—
bade his kind friends farewell, stole out of the back door, glided
along the garden fence, beneath the shadow of the trees, and
gained the wood near by without being challenged.

In an hour he was safe from all pursuit, at a friend's, on one
of the spurs of the Blue Ridge. Soon afterwards he was relating
this narrative to the present writer, near Orange.

I was interested in it, and thought that the reader might
share this interest. He knows, at least, how S—overheard
his death-warrant.